A family of unlocked processors, a slew of faster interfaces, new GPUs, and an Atom that doesn’t suck!

Part of being a Pure PC Power freak—a badge we wear proudly—is living in a constant state of anticipation and excitement over the next advance in performance. Because advances always happen. As surely as we can predict that Grumpy Cat will one day end up an even grumpier has-been with matted fur and a bad cat-nip habit, we can count on PC components to get ever smarter, ever faster, ever more refined, even if those advances aren't being live-blogged. That's just the way of technology, and yay for that!

Note: This article was taken from the December 2013 issue of the magazine.

Motion-sensing controller lands with a thud

Considering how rapidly technology advances, the longevity of the humble computer mouse gets more fascinating every day. Sure, we’ve added a scroll wheel, switched to digital tracking, and sometimes go wireless, but its basic shape and behavior remains unchanged. The Leap Motion is not necessarily designed to replace it—but after our time with it, we’re not sure where it would fit in on the desktop.

Note: This review was originally featured in the November 2013 issue of the magazine.

Worth the weight

If you’ve been following the CPU-cooling market over the past year or so, you’ve probably noticed some stagnation. Multiple vendors license a design from a few manufacturers, resulting in a roughly identical product. Sometimes the fan control software is the same program with a different skin. Wouldn’t it be nice to shake things up a bit? Silverstone seems to think so, and it seems to understand that it’s not just about looking fancy.

Note: This review was originally featured in the November 2013 issue of the magazine.

The GTX 780 overclocking champ

Last month, we took a look at EVGA’s GTX 780, which sported a new, fancy-britches “ACX” cooler. This month, it’s Asus’s turn with its own redesigned and totally non-reference GTX 780. At first glance, this GPU’s most notable attribute is its redesigned cooler, which despite many changes still bears the DirectCU II moniker we’ve seen on previous models. The new design uses five direct contact (DC) copper heat pipes, one of which is a plump 10mm, along with a primary “hybrid” fan that has two sets of fan blades to blow air in two directions at once. The cooler takes up two PCIe slots, and has an aluminum backplate wrapped around it to help support the cooler and dissipate heat across the top of the card. Our favorite feature of this cooler is that it can be detached from the card with just four screws, making it easy to clean before company comes over.

Note: This review was originally featured in the November 2013 issue of the magazine.

Microsoft missed the boat by not bolstering Windows cross-platform capabilities

Let’s begin with the most amusing part of the widely derided launch of the Xbox One: At least some of the game demos for the new system were run on a PC using Windows 7 and an Nvidia graphics card. See! Even Microsoft doesn’t use Windows 8 for gaming!

Things you need to know to become a PC hardware expert

Knowledge is power, and when it comes to PCs that’s especially true, because only by knowing how your components’ specs actually affect performance can you get the maximum power you need for the type of computing you do—and avoid being seduced by features that sound impressive on the box but won’t do squat to improve your experience. Knowing your stuff has other benefits, too. An in-depth understanding of what makes all your parts tick enables you to better troubleshoot problems, upgrade in ways that make sense, and converse with other nerds in your own secret language. Turn the page to begin your crash course in PC spec-speak.

Note: This article was originally featured in the August 2013 issue of the magazine.

Size isn’t everything

It seems like every month brings a new liquid cooler to review. Sometimes this rapid pace creates unexpected side effects. Exhibit A: The Corsair H110, which is nearly identical to the NZXT Kraken X60 reviewed on page 81 of this issue. They don’t use the same fans, they don’t recommend the same fan orientation, and the H110 skips software-based controls, but the rest of it appears to be the same bits manufactured by Asetek. Corsair also charges a slight price premium that we’re not sure is justified.

Note: This review was originally featured in the September 2013 issue of the magazine.

Prodigal son returns... with Haswell and a 780M!

If the MSI GT60 looks familiar, that might be because it’s identical to our zero-point gaming notebook, which we first reviewed in our December 2012 issue. While the laptop uses the same chassis, the refreshed unit comes with shiny new parts that include Intel’s Haswell CPU and a new top-tier 700-series GPU from Nvidia.

Note: This review was originally featured in the September 2013 issue of the magazine.

This month, we build an affordable AMD-based gaming rig to find out just how good (or bad) a CPU/GPU combo can be

The Mission We've put together some spendy systems recently. Hey, there’s a reason this mag is called Maximum PC. However, it’s caused a few readers to wonder if we drive gold-plated Humvees to work. As if! We have chauffeurs for that kind of thing. The fact is, we like the challenge of building to a rig’s optimum potential, at any price. So this month, we turn the tables and go full-on budget build.

Note: This article was originally featured in the October 2013 issue of the magazine.

Hard drives you can actually smack down

When it comes to your data, there are times when a USB key doesn't have the capacity or speed you need, and you can't afford to have a delicate hard drive smashing on the floor. Enter ruggedized USB 3.0 hard drives, which address all of our needs by combining speed and reliability into a supremely portable package. We put three such drives to the test, and found out which one has the speed you crave and the durability you require.

Note: This article was taken from the October 2013 issue of the magazine.